Indiana Mail-in Voting Restrictions Challenge

Lawsuit filed on behalf of Indiana Vote By Mail and Indiana voters under the age of 65 who were eligible and qualified to vote in the November  2020 general election, but were not entitled to vote using a mail-in ballot under state law. The complaint, filed against the Indiana Election Commission and Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson (R), alleges that Indiana’s mail-in voting law, which allows voters to use mail-in ballots under 11 circumstances, violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The plaintiffs also allege that the law violates the 26th Amendment by denying or abridging the right to vote of citizens who are 18 years of age or older, on account of age. The plaintiffs ask the court to “extend the privilege of voting by mail during the pandemic to Plaintiffs and all Indiana voters in the November 3, 2020, general election.”

During the 2020 election cycle, the plaintiffs were denied emergency relief which they appealed to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and then to the U.S. Supreme Court, which declined to hear the case. The trial court granted summary judgment for the defendants and against the plaintiffs. The plaintiffs appealed the decision to the 7th Circuit, which heard oral argument on the merits on May 17, 2023. On Aug. 15, the 7th Circuit affirmed the district court’s decision.

Last updated: May 23, 2023 3:59 pm EST